Method of making a door

ABSTRACT

A method is provided of making a door facing blank that includes a central portion, first and second side portions adjacent to and integral with opposite sides of the central portion, opposite interior and exterior surfaces, and a design element including a molded portion and an embossed portion. The side portions include stile-receiving areas that are substantially planar. The molded portion is molded in the central portion to establish a first groove in the exterior surface of the central portion and a protrusion on the interior surface of the central portion. The embossed portion is embossed in the first side portion to establish a second groove in the exterior surface of the first side portion but no protrusion on the interior surface of the first side portion. The first and second grooves are continuous.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS AND CLAIM TO PRIORITY

This application is a divisional of application Ser. No. 11/785,753,filed on Apr. 19, 2007, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,563,118, the disclosure ofwhich is incorporated by reference and to which priority is claimed.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to a door facing blank having a firstmajor surface with a design element formed therein, and an oppositesecond major surface. A method of forming a door facing blank, and amold press for forming a door facing blank are also disclosed.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Hollow and solid core doors typically include a perimeter frame withfirst and second door facings secured to opposite sides of the frame.The door facings may be formed from composites of cellulosic materialand resin binder, polymers, or metal.

Hollow or solid core doors may be of the ‘flush’ type, that is, one thatis flat or planar on both major surfaces. Alternatively, one or bothdoor facings may include contoured portions, architectural elements ortextures. For example, a door facing may be molded to include contouredportions simulating stiles, rails and panels.

Molded and architectural features are often desirable to consumers, andmay be molded or embossed into a blank during compression. However, adifferent die set is typically required for each size and length doorfacing. For example, a plurality of die sets are typically required toform door facings of different widths, even if the molded design issimilar on all of the different width door facings due to the positionand configuration of the molded portions on the facing. Likewise,different die sets are typically required for different length doorfacings, even if the molded design configuration is similar on allfacings.

As such, molded door facings having contoured or architectural featuresare relatively expensive because the capital cost is quite high due tothe need for dies, presses, and the like for each specific door facingsize. The flat or planar facings used for flush doors, on the otherhand, are relatively inexpensive, but do not provide the aestheticfeatures often desired by consumers.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to a door facing blank having a firstmajor surface intended to be exteriorly disposed and an opposite secondmajor surface intended to be interiorly disposed. First and secondplanar, spaced stile receiving areas are disposed on the second majorsurface. A central portion is intermediate the first and second stilereceiving areas. A plurality of grooves are formed in the first majorsurface and define a design element. At least one of the groovesincludes an embossed portion disposed in the first major surfaceopposite the first and second planar spaced stile receiving areas and amolded portion disposed in the central portion. At least one of thefirst and second spaced stile receiving areas are trimmable to form adoor facing having a selected width.

The present invention also relates to a door facing blank having a firstmajor surface intended to be exteriorly disposed and an opposite secondmajor surface intended to be interiorly disposed. A design element isformed in the first major surface. At least three longitudinallyextending spaced stile receiving areas are disposed on the second majorsurface. Two of the stile receiving areas define a first width, andthree of the stile receiving areas define a second width greater thanthe first width. The door facing blank may be trimmed to form a doorfacing having a selected width and having a first one of the stilereceiving areas adjacent a first longitudinal edge of the door facing,and a second one of the stile receiving areas adjacent a secondlongitudinal edge of the door facing.

A method of forming a door is also disclosed. A perimeter frame havingfirst and second spaced stiles defining a width is provided. First andsecond door facing blanks are provided. Each of the blanks has a firstmajor surface and an opposite second major surface, a design elementformed in the first major surface, and a plurality of longitudinallyextending spaced stile receiving areas disposed on the second majorsurface. First and second stile receiving areas are selected that arespaced by a distance corresponding to the width of the first and secondspaced stiles. The first and second door facing blanks are trimmedadjacent the selected first and second stile receiving areas to formfirst and second door facings having selected widths. The first andsecond door facings are then secured to opposite sides of the perimeterframe, thereby forming a door.

The present invention also relates to a mold press for forming thedisclosed door facing blank. The mold press includes an upper die moldand a spaced lower die mold, which form a mold cavity for molding asubstrate to form the door facing blank. The upper die mold has aplurality of protrusions disposed in a first portion and embossingfeatures disposed in a second portion. The lower die mold has aplurality of depressions aligned with and complementary to the pluralityof protrusions for forming molded features in the substrate, and planarportions aligned with the embossing features for forming stile receivingareas in the substrate. The die mold forms a door facing blank having atleast three longitudinally extending spaced stile receiving areas on anintended interior surface thereof, two of the stile receiving areasdefining a first width, and three of the stile receiving areas defininga second width greater than the first width. The door facing blank maybe trimmed to form a door facing having a selected width.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a door facing blank having a design elementaccording to an embodiment of the present invention, showing embossedportions in hatched line;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the door facing blank of FIG. 1 takenalong line 2-2 and viewed in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view of circled portion 3 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged sectional view of circled portion 4 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary sectional view of a molded groove of a designelement of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary sectional view of an embossed groove of a designelement of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a plan view of a door facing having a design element havingmolded and embossed portions, with embossed portions shown in hatchedline;

FIG. 7A is a plan view of the door facing of FIG. 7 after trimming afirst side portion;

FIG. 7B is a plan view of the door facing of FIG. 7 after trimming firstand second side portions;

FIG. 8 is a plan view of a door facing blank having a design elementaccording to another embodiment;

FIG. 9 is a sectional view of the door facing blank of FIG. 8 takenalong line 9-9 and viewed in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 10 is a sectional view of a door according to the presentinvention;

FIG. 11 is a plan view of a door facing blank having a design elementaccording to another embodiment;

FIG. 12 is a plan view of a door facing blank having a design elementaccording to another embodiment;

FIG. 13 is a plan view of a door facing blank having a design elementaccording to another embodiment;

FIG. 14 is a plan view of a door facing blank having a design elementaccording to another embodiment;

FIG. 15 is a plan view of a door facing blank having a design elementaccording to another embodiment;

FIG. 16 is a plan view of a door facing blank having a design elementaccording to another embodiment;

FIG. 17 is a plan view of a door facing blank having a design elementaccording to another embodiment; and

FIG. 18 is a sectional view of a mold press according to the presentinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a door facing blank 10 according to thepresent invention includes a first major surface 12 intended to beexteriorly disposed and an opposite second major surface 14 intended tobe interiorly disposed.

A design element is formed in first major surface 12. An exemplarydesign element according to an embodiment of the present invention isshown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The design element includes molded grooves 16formed in a central portion 18 of blank 10, as shown in FIGS. 1-3.Molded grooves 16 include corresponding protrusions extend outwardlyfrom second major surface 14. Molded grooves 16 may include an upwardlyextending central bead 20 intermediate side walls 22, 24.

The design element may also include embossed grooves 16A formed in firstand second side portions 26, 28 of blank 10, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 4.First and second side portions 26, 28 are shown adjacent to and integralwith opposite sides of the central portion 18. Embossed grooves 16A mayinclude upwardly extending central beads 20A intermediate side walls22A, 24A. While embossed grooves 16A extend into first major surface 12,second major surface 14 is preferably substantially planar opposite anyembossed grooves 16A, such as in first and second side portions 26, 28,as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4.

As known in the art, molding a cellulosic substrate involves re-shapingthe material using heat and pressure. The cellulosic substrate isre-shaped by stretching and bending the fibers of the cellulosicmaterial during the molding process. A geometric change in the centralplane of the substrate occurs during the molding process. The centralplane of a planar substrate is defined at the center of the caliper ofthe substrate, shown by dashed line X in FIG. 5. The depth d1 of amolded portion may be greater than the total caliper C of the substrate.For example, molded grooves 16 may be molded to a depth of about 0.07inch or more, while the total caliper of blank 10 may be between about0.1 to 0.2 inches. Preferably, molded grooves 16 are molded to a depthof between about 0.1 inch and about 0.5 inch. Thus, the depth d1 ofmolded grooves 16 may be greater than the total caliper C of blank 10.As such, a portion of molded grooves 16 extends outwardly from the planeof second major surface 14.

By contrast, embossing typically involves pressing a substrate with atextured roll or plate. This process results in a slightly contouredsurface having a relatively shallow profile depth, but without ageometric change in the central plane X of the substrate, as shown inFIG. 6. Using conventional embossing techniques, the depth of adepressed portion that has been embossed into a cellulosic fibersubstrate is typically less than ⅓ of the total caliper of the substrateprior to embossing. Thus, the central plane X of the cellulosic fibersubstrate is not altered during the embossing process when formingembossed grooves 16A. Rather, embossed grooves 16A are simply pressedinwards toward the central plane, so that the corresponding portion ofsecond major surface 14 opposite embossed grooves 16A is substantiallyplanar, as shown in FIGS. 2, 4 and 6. For example, grooves 16A may beembossed into first major surface 12 to a depth d2 of about 0.005 inchor more. More preferably, embossed grooves 16A are embossed to a depthd2 of between about 0.005 inch and about 0.07 inch.

Molded grooves 16 are preferably configured and positioned on blank 10so that second major surface 14 is substantially planar on first andsecond side portions 26, 28. In this way, stiles of a perimeter framemay be easily secured to planar portions of second major surface 14 at aselected position on first and second side portions 26, 28. Preferably,first and second side portions 26, 28 have a width greater than thewidth of the stiles to be secured thereto. In this way, blank 10 may betrimmed to a selected width, while maintaining a portion of each offirst and second side portions 26, 28 for accommodating stiles. Inaddition, molded grooves 16 and embossed grooves 16A are configured sothat even if first and/or second side portions 26, 28 are trimmed, theremaining design element on the resulting door facing is aestheticallyacceptable.

Referring to FIGS. 7, 7A and 7B, embossed grooves 16A extend outwardlyfrom and linearly with corresponding molded grooves 16. The resultingdesign element includes a plurality of parallel grooves 16, 16Aextending angularly across the entire first major surface 12, giving theappearance of a door formed from a plurality of slanted planks P.Because first and second side portions 26, 28 are embossed, they may betrimmed to achieve a door facing having a selected width, while firstmajor surface 12 maintains the same appearance.

For example, blank 10 having molded grooves 16 in central portion 18 andembossed grooves 16A in side portions 26, 28 may be molded to have awidth w1 corresponding to a standard commercial width w1 of door facingF1, e.g. a door facing having a width of about 36 inches. With minimalor no trimming, blank 10 may be used as door facing F1, as shown in FIG.7. First side portion 26 of blank 10 may be trimmed to form a doorfacing F2 having a second width w2, as shown in FIG. 7A. Both first andsecond side portions 26, 28 may be trimmed to form a door facing F3having a third width w3, as shown in FIG. 7B. The design element onfirst major surface 12, which resembles a plurality of slanted planks P,is maintained on door facings F2 and F3, despite first and/or secondportions 26, 28 having been trimmed, and even if unequal portions offirst and second portions 26, 28 have been trimmed.

Blank 10 may be trimmed using any conventional cutting method to form adoor facing having any one of a plurality of different widths due to theconfiguration and positioning of molded grooves 16 and embossed grooves16A, which maintain an aesthetically acceptable design element on alldoor facing widths. For example, predetermined portions of blank 10 maybe trimmed to form a door facing having one of eleven selectable widths.Conventional methods of forming door facings having the same moldeddesign element but different widths typically require a separate diemold for each width. Blank 10 therefore substantially reducesmanufacturing costs because a plurality of different width door facingsmay be formed from the same blank 10, which is formed from a single diemold.

It should be understood that more than three different width doorfacings may be formed from blank 10, given the widths of first andsecond side portions 26, 28 are substantially greater than the stiles tobe secure thereto. Preferably, a portion of each of first and secondside portions 26, 28 remains after trimming and has a width at leastequal to the width of the stile to be secured thereto, so that asubstantially planar longitudinally extending surface is provided forreceiving the corresponding stile.

Blank 10 also preferably includes a first rail receiving area 30adjacent a first end 32 of blank 10, and a second rail receiving area 34adjacent a second end 36 of blank 10, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 7-7B. Railreceiving areas 30, 34 preferably extend horizontally across blank 10,perpendicular to longitudinal edges 38, 40 thereof. As such, railreceiving areas 30, 34 extend through first and second side portions 26,28 as well as central portion 18. Preferably, portions of the designelement formed in first major surface 12 and extending into railreceiving areas 30, 34 are embossed (e.g. embossed grooves 16A), asopposed to molded (e.g. molded grooves 16). In this way, thecorresponding second major surface 14 opposite rail receiving areas 30,34 is substantially planar for accommodating the rails of a perimeterframe.

Blank 10 may also be configured so that the design element does notextend into rail receiving areas 30, 34. For example, first majorsurface 12 may include upper and lower planar portions resembling rails.Further, rail receiving areas 30, 34 may be configured to be wider thanthe width of the rails to be secured thereto, so that portions of railreceiving areas 30, 34 may be trimmed while still maintaining a portionsufficient for accommodating the rails of the perimeter frame. In thisway, blank 10 may be trimmed to form a door facing having a selectedlength as well a selected width.

It should be understood that the design element formed in blank 10 isnot limited to a specific configuration and position of slanted grooves16, 16A shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 7-7B. Moreover, the specificconfigurations of grooves 16, 16A are not limited to that shown in FIGS.3 and 4. Rather, various configurations of a design element are possiblewith the present invention.

For example, a blank 10A may be formed having a design element includinga plurality of grooves 16 extending parallel to longitudinal edges 38,40, as shown in FIG. 8. Grooves 16 may be evenly spaced to define aplurality of longitudinally extending planks P1 having uniform widths.Planks P1 may extend from first end 32 of blank 10A to second end 36.

The design element of blank 10A may include all molded grooves 16, asshown in FIG. 9. Because molded grooves 16 have correspondingprotrusions extending outwardly from second major surface 14, moldedgrooves 16 are preferably spaced from one another to form stilereceiving areas 42 disposed on second major surface 14 at predeterminedpositions between the protrusions. For example, blank 10A may includeeleven stile receiving areas 42. Blank 10A is configured so that stilereceiving areas 42 adjacent longitudinal edges 38, 40 accommodate firstand second stiles 44, 46 of a perimeter frame, as shown in FIGS. 9 and10. Stile receiving areas 42 are preferably substantially planar.

Similar to blank 10, the entire width of blank 10A defines a door facingF4 having a width (e.g. first width w1) which includes all moldedgrooves 16, as shown in FIGS. 8-10. Molded grooves 16 are spaced andconfigured in such a way so that blank 10A may be trimmed to any one ofa plurality of door facing sizes. Specified portions of blank 10A areremoved so that second major surface 14 can still accommodate stiles 44,46 after trimming. The rails of the perimeter frame may be notched toaccommodate molded grooves 16. Thus, a plurality of different doorfacings may be formed from a single blank 10A, and thus from a singledie mold.

It should be understood that the specific widths of planks P1 (or P) andspacing of grooves 16 may vary as desired. For example, planks P1 (or P)may have substantially uniform widths of at least about 3 inches, andgrooves 16 may be offset from a longitudinal center plane, as shown bydashed line Y in FIG. 8. Such a configuration and position of grooves 16allows blank 10A to be trimmed to form a door facing having any one of aplurality of widths (e.g. standard commercial widths of 12 inches, 18inches, 20 inches, 24 inches, 26 inches, 28 inches, 30 inches, 32inches, 34 inches, or 36 inches; or standard commercial metric doorswidths as known in the art). Thus, blank 10A may be used to form 10 ormore different door facings having different widths.

Each plank P1 preferably has a width at least equal to the width ofstile 44 (or 46), given the width of planks P1 define the width of stilereceiving areas 42, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10. In addition, the widthsof planks P1 need not be uniform. For example, a blank 10B having adesign element including a plurality of molded grooves 16 (and/orembossed grooves 16A) may be provided wherein the widths of planks P2vary, as shown in FIG. 11.

Design elements may be provided wherein molded grooves 16 (and/orembossed grooves 16A) do not extend across the entire first majorsurface 12 from first end 32 to second end 36, or from longitudinal edge38 to longitudinal edge 40. For example, a blank 10C having a designelement including a first rail portion 48 adjacent first end 32 and asecond rail portion 50 adjacent second end 36, as shown in FIG. 12.First and second rail portions 48, 50 are preferably substantiallyplanar. As such, corresponding rail receiving areas 30, 34 are providedon second major surface 14, as described above, which are likewiseplanar and accommodate rails of the perimeter frame. First and secondrail portions 48, 50 are preferably defined by embossed grooves 16A, sothat a planar surface extends the entire length of the blank foraccommodating stiles of the perimeter frame.

Blanks 10D, 10E and 10F having other exemplary design elements includinglinearly extending, molded grooves 16 and/or embossed grooves 16A areshown in FIGS. 13, 14 and 15. As described above, the design element mayinclude both molded and embossed features. Design elements includingfeatures primarily extending horizontally, such as the design element ofblank 10F shown in FIG. 15, preferably include embossed grooves 16A infirst and second side portions 26, 28, and molded grooves 16 in centralportion 18, as described above.

The design element formed in the blank of the present invention is notlimited to parallel, linearly extending grooves 16, 16A. For example, ablank 10G having an organic design element may be formed in first majorsurface 12, as shown in FIG. 16. Any organic design element, such as adesign pattern having the characteristics of a living organism(s) suchas a plant or flower, may be formed in first major surface 12.Alternatively, a blank 10H having a design element including a geometricconfiguration may be formed in first major surface 12, as shown in FIGS.17. Any geometric design element, such as a design pattern characterizedby straight lines, triangles, circles, squares, or similar regularforms, may be formed in first major surface 12.

It should be understood that relatively complex design elements may alsobe provided, such as a plurality of concentric circles or texturedsurface. It may be desirable to form such complex design elements byembossing only, given it may be more difficult to mold such featurescompared to embossing. However, all design elements provide that theblank may be easily trimmed to any desired length and width whilemaintaining a commercially acceptable design element on first majorsurface 12.

Other molded and/or embossed design elements not specifically shown inthe figures are also within the scope of the disclosed invention.Regardless of the specific design element provided, predeterminedportions of the blank may be trimmed along one or both longitudinaledges 38, 40 to achieve the desired facing width, while providing areason second major surface 14 for accommodating stiles and/or rails (e.g.planar first and second side portions 26, 28; stile receiving areas 42;and/or rail receiving areas 30. 34).

The cost of manufacturing a plurality of door facings having differentwidths but similar design elements is substantially reduced given oneblank (e.g. blanks 10-10H) may be used to form a door facing having aselected width and length. Moreover, only one die mold is required toform the blank, thereby minimizing the number of die molds required.Referring to FIGS. 1, 2 and 18, blank 10 may be formed from a mat M ofcellulosic fiber material and resin binder, as known in the art. Mat Mis disposed within a mold press 100 having an upper die mold 102 and alower die mold 104, and compressed therebetween using heat and pressure.Upper die mold 102 may include outwardly extending protrusions 106 forforming molded portions 16 in the resulting blank 10, and embossingportions 108 for forming embossed portions 16A. Lower die mold 104includes depressions 110 corresponding to protrusions 106. However,areas corresponding to embossing portions 108 are planar, therebyforming planar areas on second major surface 14 of the resulting blank10 (e.g. first and second side portions 26, 28).

Thus, one mold press 100 having the desired design element may be usedto form a plurality of door facings having different widths, therebysubstantially reducing manufacturing costs. While die mold 100 isdescribed as molding a cellulosic mat M, it should be understood that adie mold for post-molding a wood composite panel may also be provided,or for molding other materials such as a polymer composite (e.g. sheetmolding compound or fiberglass reinforced composites) or metal (e.g.steel or aluminum).

The present invention is also directed to a method of forming a door. Aperimeter frame having first and second spaced stiles 44, 46 isprovided. First and second door facing blanks 10 (or blanks 10A-H) areprovided having a design element, as described above, and a plurality ofstile receiving areas 42. First and second stile receiving areas 42 areselected, which are spaced by a predetermined distance. Blanks 10 arethen trimmed adjacent the selected stile receiving areas 42, therebyforming door facings having widths that will correspond to the width ofthe perimeter frame. The door facings may then be secured to oppositesides of the perimeter frame, as shown in FIG. 10.

While the invention has been described in connection with specificembodiments thereof, it will be understood that it is capable of furthermodifications. This application is intended to cover any suchmodifications, variations, or adaptations of the invention provided theycome within the scope of the following claims or their equivalents.

We claim:
 1. A method of making a door, comprising the steps of:pressing a substrate in a mold press comprising an upper die mold and alower die mold that collectively form a cavity for molding and embossingthe substrate into a door facing blank having a central portion, firstand second side portions adjacent to and integral with opposite sides ofthe central portion, an exterior surface, an interior surface, and adesign element, the upper die mold comprising a protruding molding diefeature and a first protruding embossing die feature, the lower die moldcomprising a depression molding die feature aligned with andcomplementary to the protruding molding die feature of the upper diemold and a first substantially planar die feature aligned with the firstprotruding embossing die feature of the upper die mold, wherein saidpressing of the substrate in the mold press causes the protrudingmolding die feature of the upper die mold and the depression molding diefeature of the lower die mold to form a molded portion of the designelement in the central portion but not the side portions of the doorfacing blank, the molded portion of the design element comprising afirst groove in the exterior surface of the central portion and acorresponding first protrusion on the interior surface of the centralportion, the first protrusion being aligned with and complementary tothe first groove, wherein said pressing of the substrate in the moldpress causes the first protruding embossing die feature of the upper diemold and the first substantially planar die feature of the lower diemold to form a first embossed portion of the design element in the firstside portion, the first embossed portion of the design elementcomprising a second groove in the exterior surface of the first side butno corresponding second protrusion on the interior surface of the firstside portion so that the interior surface of the first and second sideportions form substantially planar first and second stile-receivingareas that are longitudinally extending and spaced from one another,wherein the first and second grooves are continuous with one another,and wherein the method further comprises forming an additional doorfacing blank according to said pressing step; trimming the door facingblank and the additional door facing blank adjacent to the first andsecond stile-receiving areas to provide the door facing blank and theadditional door facing blank with selected widths; and securing thefirst and second stile-receiving areas of the door facing blank and theadditional door facing blank to opposite sides of first and secondspaced stiles of a door frame to make a door.
 2. The method of claim 1,wherein the first and second stile-receiving areas are trimmable toreduce an overall width of the door facing blanks.
 3. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the molded portion of the design element has a depth ofat least about 0.07 inch.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the moldedportion of the design element has a depth that is greater than athickness of the door facing blank.
 5. The method of claim 1, whereinthe door facing blank comprises a member selected from the groupconsisting of cellulosic composite, polymer composite, and metal.
 6. Themethod of claim 1, wherein: the upper die mold further comprises asecond protruding embossing die feature, and the lower die mold furthercomprises a second substantially planar die feature aligned with thesecond protruding embossing die feature of the upper die mold, whereinsaid pressing of the substrate in the mold press causes the secondprotruding embossing die feature of the upper die mold and the secondsubstantially planar die feature of the lower die mold to form a secondembossed portion of the design element in the second side portion, thesecond embossed portion of the design element comprising a third groovein the exterior surface but no corresponding third protrusion on theinterior surface, and wherein the first and third grooves are continuouswith one another.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and secondgrooves collectively define a continuous central bead.
 8. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the first and second grooves collectively establish oneof a plurality of linear grooves extending parallel to one another tosimulate an appearance of a plurality of planks in the exterior surface.9. The method of claim 1, wherein the design element comprises simulatedfirst and second planks separated from one another by the first andsecond grooves.
 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the first and secondplanks are slanted relative to top and bottom edges of the door facingblank.
 11. The method of claim 1, wherein the design element comprises asimulated organic element.
 12. The method of claim 11, wherein thesimulated organic element comprises a member selected from the groupconsisting of a plant and a flower.
 13. The method of claim 1, whereinthe design element comprises a geometric shape.
 14. The method of claim13, wherein the geometric shape is a square.
 15. The method of claim 13,wherein the geometric shape is a circle.
 16. A method of making a door,comprising the steps of: pressing a substrate in a mold press comprisingan upper die mold and a lower die mold that collectively form a cavityfor molding and embossing the substrate into a door facing blank havinga central portion, a frame portion surrounding and integral with thecentral portion, an exterior surface, an interior surface, and a designelement, the upper die mold comprising a protruding molding die featureand a first protruding embossing die feature, the lower die moldcomprising a depression molding die feature aligned with andcomplementary to the protruding molding die feature of the upper diemold and a first substantially planar die feature aligned with the firstprotruding embossing die feature of the upper die mold, wherein saidpressing of the substrate in the mold press causes the protrudingmolding die feature of the upper die mold and the depression molding diefeature of the lower die mold to form a molded portion of the designelement in the central portion but not the frame portion of the doorfacing blank, the molded portion of the design element comprising afirst groove in the exterior surface of the central portion and acorresponding first protrusion on the interior surface of the centralportion, the first protrusion being aligned with and complementary tothe first groove, wherein said pressing of the substrate in the moldpress causes the first protruding embossing die feature of the upper diemold and the first substantially planar die feature of the lower diemold to form a first embossed portion of the design element in the frameportion, the first embossed portion of the design element comprising asecond groove in the exterior surface but no corresponding secondprotrusion on the interior surface so that the interior surface of theframe portion forms substantially planar first and secondstile-receiving areas that are longitudinally extending and spaced fromone another at opposite sides of the frame portion and substantiallyplanar first and second rail-receiving areas at opposite ends of theframe portion, wherein the first and second grooves are continuous withone another, and wherein the method further comprises forming anadditional door facing blank according to said pressing step; trimmingthe door facing blank and the additional door facing blank adjacent tothe first and second stile-receiving areas to provide the door facingblank and the additional door facing blank with selected widths; andsecuring the first and second stile-receiving areas of the door facingblank and the additional door facing blank to opposite sides of firstand second spaced stiles of a door frame to make a door.
 17. The methodof claim 16, wherein the frame portion further comprises a substantiallyplanar third rail-receiving area positioned between and spaced from thesubstantially planar first and second rail-receiving areas.
 18. Themethod of claim 16, wherein: the door frame further comprises first andsecond rails; and said securing further comprises securing thesubstantially planar first and second rail-receiving areas of the doorfacing blank and the additional door facing blank to opposite sides ofthe first and second rails of the door frame.